The first of the companies profiled, which ended up being a financial backer of the film, Sambazon, come out of a pair of brothers’ Western appreciation for berries largely known mostly where they are produced in the Amazon. But Sambazon has brought the açaí tastes to markets globally, and by doing so devising a way that both compensates farmers (who climb up palm trees once cut down for heart of palm to gather berries) and preserves the Amazon from the kind of clear-cutting that other less environmentally-minded companies have been imposing. The company name itself stands for sustainable management of the Brazilian Amazon.
Thoughtfully, every aspect of the operations are taken into consideration as well, from packaging to transportation to market. The Fair Trade model is used by the companies as well, from the Good Bean to the Argentinian yerba mate made into an herbal tea by Guayaki, and the organic tea company Numi. And should you seek a place to buy these things, the online Thrive market seeks to make them available at reasonable prices.
A collection of interviews that often heard above visually compelling footage of the environments, “Seeding Change” throws out statistics that are sometimes surprising, particularly those concerning the clothing industry — cited as the second largest polluter behind oil, with 50 million tons of textile waste are dumped into landfills every year. While most of the companies featured are food and consumables, one apparently started by a surfer, Outerknown, exclusively uses wholly recycled fabric.
The continued scourge of plastics — with 8 million tons of plastics dumped each year into the ocean, adding to the 150 tons already there — there may be more plastic than fish in the ocean by 2050. So a number of these companies discuss packaging as well.
“You can’t ask your consumers to be responsible for their waste if you’re not,” says Reem Ameziane Hassani, co founder of Numi Tea. So they’ve been banding with other companies to demand packaging that’s biodegradable and compostable.
The heroes of the film are these entrepreneurs who always have the health of the planet uppermost in mind more than health of their pocketbook. But there is at least one movie star appearance — Harrison Ford speaking at a UN environmental event. But the film ends in a flurry of optimism through a number of college students’ initiatives toward campus sustainability.
Overcoming seemingly insurmountable barriers in the environmental crisis through solutions that bolster local farmers and communities makes “Seeding Change” a refreshing look at solutions that work and are working. It’s that rare thing, an optimistic film about environmental possibilities and working solutions that doesn’t overstay its welcome.
“Seeding Change: The Power of Conscious Commerce” is available on many video on demand platforms including iTunes, Apple TV, Amazon and Vimeo.